Genesis 3: The fall and the promise
Man falls into sin and death, but God promises that the woman's seed will crush the serpent's head.
Where Genesis 3 sits
- In the story
- Act II, Fall: Genesis 3–11
- In the Bible
- Old Testament · The Law · chapter 3 of 50 in Genesis
- In Genesis
- Heavens and earth: Eden lost, 2:4–4:26 · part of All humanity
- Before
- Genesis 2: The garden and the command
- After
- Genesis 4: Cain, Abel and Seth
Genesis 3 summary
The serpent questions God's word and the woman eats, then gives to her husband; their eyes are opened to shame, and they hide from the LORD God. God questions them, curses the serpent, and pronounces pain, conflict, toil and death, but in the sentence on the serpent He announces enmity and a coming seed who will crush its head. God clothes them with skins and sends them out of Eden, with cherubim guarding the way to the tree of life.
Genesis 3 in context
- Speaking
- Moses, narrating; the serpent, the woman, the man and the LORD God all speak
- Written for
- Israel, who know temptation, exile and sacrifice, learning where sin and death began and where hope began
- Around it
- Follows the command and the gift of marriage (ch. 2); sin's spread to murder follows at once (ch. 4)
How Genesis 3 points to Christ
The first Adam's disobedience brought death to all, and the last Adam's obedience brings life (Rom 5:12–19); the woman's seed who crushes the serpent's head is Christ, who through death destroyed the devil (Gal 4:4; Heb 2:14)
The sections of Genesis 3
- Did God really say?3:1–5
The serpent questions and then denies God's word, promising that eating will make the woman like God.
- The fall3:6–8
The woman eats and gives to her husband; their eyes open to shame, and they hide from the LORD God.
- Where are you?3:9–13
God calls the man and questions both; the man blames the woman God gave him, and the woman blames the serpent.
- The sentences and the promise3:14–19
God curses the serpent and promises a seed of the woman to crush its head; pain, toil and death fall on the woman and man.
- Eve and the garments3:20–21
Adam names his wife Eve, mother of all living, and the LORD God clothes them with garments of skin.
- Sent out of Eden3:22–24
God drives the man from Eden, lest he eat of the tree of life, and sets cherubim to guard the way.
Read Genesis 3
The Serpent’s Deception
1Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field that the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’”
2The woman answered the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden, 3but about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You must not eat of it or touch it, or you will die.’”
4“You will not surely die,” the serpent told the woman. 5“For God knows that in the day you eat of it, your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
6When the woman saw that the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom, she took the fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate it.
7And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; so they sewed together fig leaves and made coverings for themselves.
God Arraigns Adam and Eve
8Then the man and his wife heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the breeze of the day, and they hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
9But the LORD God called out to the man, “Where are you?”
10“I heard Your voice in the garden,” he replied, “and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.”
11“Who told you that you were naked?” asked the LORD God. “Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”
12And the man answered, “The woman whom You gave me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”
13Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”
“The serpent deceived me,” she replied, “and I ate.”
The Fate of the Serpent
14So the LORD God said to the serpent:
“Because you have done this,
cursed are you above all livestock
and every beast of the field!
On your belly will you go,
and dust you will eat,
all the days of your life.
15And I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your seed and her seed.
He will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel.”
The Punishment of Mankind
16To the woman He said:
“I will sharply increase your pain in childbirth;
in pain you will bring forth children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you.”
17And to Adam He said:
“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife
and have eaten from the tree
of which I commanded you not to eat,
cursed is the ground because of you;
through toil you will eat of it
all the days of your life.
18Both thorns and thistles it will yield for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
19By the sweat of your brow
you will eat your bread,
until you return to the ground—
because out of it were you taken.
For dust you are,
and to dust you shall return.”
20And Adam named his wife Eve, because she would be the mother of all the living.
The Expulsion from Paradise
21And the LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and He clothed them.
22Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil. And now, lest he reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever...”
23Therefore the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. 24So He drove out the man and stationed cherubim on the east side of the Garden of Eden, along with a whirling sword of flame to guard the way to the tree of life.
Berean Standard Bible, 24 verses. The BSB is in the public domain.
Around Genesis 3
Also in Heavens and earth: Eden lost
On the road
Places
- Eden
Read alongside
- 2 Corinthians 11:3 Eve was deceived by the serpent's cunning.
- Romans 5:12–19 Sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin.
- Hebrews 2:14 By His death He destroys him who holds the power of death.
- 1 John 3:8 The Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of the devil.
- Revelation 22:2–3 The tree of life again, and no longer any curse.
Chapters that point here
- Genesis 4
- Genesis 16
- Exodus 25
- Exodus 26
- Ecclesiastes 3
- Ezekiel 28
- Matthew 13
- Romans 7
- Romans 16
- 2 Thessalonians 3
- 1 Timothy 2
- Hebrews 6
- Revelation 12
How Genesis 3 connects
- The Seed Line · Genesis 3:15 · The first promise of the seed: one born of a woman who will crush the serpent. (Romans 16:20; Revelation 12:9; Revelation 12:17)
- Blessing · Genesis 3:14–19 · The curses that the promise of blessing will answer; in the end “no longer will there be any curse.” (Romans 8:20–22; Revelation 22:3)
- The Temple Line · Genesis 3:24 · Cherubim guard the way into God's presence, as they are woven into the tabernacle veil (Exod 26:31).
- The Lamb Line · Genesis 3:21 · God covers the sinners with skins; many see here the first death of an animal on their behalf, though no New Testament text says so.
- Promise · Genesis 3:15, kept in Romans 16:20; Revelation 12:9; Revelation 12:17
- Type · Adam, whose one act of disobedience brought death on all pictures Christ, whose obedience brings righteousness and life to many (Romans 5:12–19; 1 Corinthians 15:21–22)
- Covenant with Adam · Genesis 3:6; Genesis 3:22–24 · Broken: death comes as threatened, and the way to the tree of life is shut; life cannot now come by that covenant.
- Covenant of grace · Genesis 3:15 · First revealed: a Redeemer born of the woman will crush the serpent; from here on, sinners are saved by trusting God's promise.
Doctrines Genesis 3 teaches
- The fall, sin and its punishment · Genesis 3:1–7; Romans 5:12
- Free will · Genesis 3:6; Genesis 3:11–13
How Genesis 3 is shaped
Eden in seven scenes Gen 2:4–3:24
- A 2:4–17 God alone acts: man formed, garden planted, command given
- B 2:18–25 God acts for the man: the woman made
- C 3:1–5 Serpent and woman talk
- D 3:6–8 The fall
- C′ 3:9–13 God questions the man and the woman
- B′ 3:14–21 God acts: sentences, names, garments
- A′ 3:22–24 God alone acts: man sent out, the way guarded
Scenes are marked by changes in who is present and who speaks. “Naked” (2:25) sits beside the “crafty” serpent (3:1), a sound-play in Hebrew, and the nakedness of 2:25 is answered by God's clothing in 3:21.
Questions on Genesis 3
What does God promise about the woman's seed in 3:15?
Show the answer
God will put enmity between the serpent and the woman, and between the serpent’s seed and hers; her seed will crush the serpent’s head, while the serpent strikes his heel (3:15).
Which scene sits at the center of the seven scenes of 2:4–3:24?
Show the answer
The fall itself (3:6–8): the woman eats and gives to her husband, their eyes are opened, and they hide from the LORD God. The scenes before it lead up to it, and the scenes after it answer it.
Where do cherubim first appear in the Bible, and what do they guard?
Show the answer
At the end of Genesis 3. After driving the man out of Eden, God stations cherubim on its east side, with a whirling sword of flame, to guard the way to the tree of life (3:24).
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